The inner bailey of Lothian Manor opened before them like a killing field.
It had been years since Ollie played on the grass of the open yard as a child, waving around the sword his father had carved for him and dreaming of becoming a hero like the knights of the Lothian Court. It had been eight months since he last walked through these gates, following Head Cook Otis to the Summer Villa in order to prepare for Lord Owain's visit with the woman pretending to be Ashlynn Blackwell.
Now, he'd finally come home again, and he really was a knight. The weapons at his waist might not be swords, but they were even more deadly…. It's just that he felt like anything but a hero after knocking a pair of hapless guardsmen aside in order to breach the gate, and he felt even less like one as he emerged from the gatehouse at the head of Ashlynn's assault force.
